Durc's Story (Book 2 of 9) Durc's Journey
by RedRoseOfTexas
Summary: No longer tied to his Clan, Durc and his daughter set out to find a distant family connection.


Originally posted on Archive Of Our Own May 26, 2019

Durc's Story (Book 2 of 9) Durc's Journey

Summary:  
No longer tied to his Clan, Durc and his daughter set out to find a distant family connection.

Notes:  
Probably helpful if you have also read the next two books in the Earth's Children series (Valley Of Horses and The Mammoth Hunters) to understand this story.

Chapter 1: First Steps

The Clan woman knelt at Durc's feet, waiting for his recognition. He smiled and tapped her shoulder.  
"This woman is grateful for so many things. I am grateful that you allowed me to accompany my daughter to your cave. I am grateful you also invited your young friend Cras to join the people of your cave, and that you let Cras be my mate instead of Groban. I am grateful for these things because without them, I would have died a lonely and unlucky old woman. Your decisions have given me a life of happiness filled with children of my own and grandchildren. No one thinks of me as unlucky here. I sometimes think that if that man of the Others had not brought me such pain and anguish, I would never have known this great happiness here with Durc's Clan.  
"My daughter spent her whole life in happiness as well because of you. From her earliest days I told her that you would be her mate. I told her she was special because no Clan woman ever knew who her mate was to be. A leader would decide, and that would be her destiny. I told Ura that her mate was not chosen by a leader. Her mate was chosen by the spirits themselves by giving Durc's mother and me babies that were different than Clan, but so alike each other that no other pairing was possible. She spent her days knowing where she would be for the rest of her life. She knew it would be a special life. I think even she was surprised just how special her life was after she mated you. It is one thing for a girl to dream of a special life. It is quite another for a woman to be the light of a man's life."  
Durc grimaced in pain at the word 'light'. Ura had been his light, and now he was in darkness.  
"Ura was this woman's light as well. Cras has been the light of my life. It is important you know that a life can have more than one light. I wish this old woman could go with her leader on his journey."  
"Your place is here." Oda nodded. "I have asked Cras to raise Ura's son to be a good hunter. Ura told me his place was here with you. I hope you will teach him to be a good man, a kind man, a good mate."  
"I promise he will know all about his mother and her mate. Perhaps you will come back to this cave and tell him how the Legend of Durc will end."  
"I would like my Journey to end here. My destiny is to be once again with my light, up there in the stars. It does not matter where on this Earth I go, I know that is where I will be for all eternity. Walk with Ursus, mother of my light."

Dura waited impatiently by the path that would take them north. She had formed no strong attachments to her fellow Clan people. It was as if she had always known her destiny was elsewhere. Her father had spent far too much time saying his goodbyes. The path was calling to her, and now she was going to answer it. She had packed light, only bringing the bare necessities. Her father's pack was much heavier, and she knew he would not be able to run with her. She thought running ahead to find water sources and places to camp would be better than the two of them walking and hoping to find something before darkness fell. She could be running now. She wanted to be running now. Tonight's camp was a well know place used by hunters, so there was no need to run ahead in search. But tomorrow, tomorrow she would run.  
Durc motioned his final 'walk with Ursus' to his Clan and met Dura at the path. "Come daughter, our journey has begun." Her smile was contagious. As they walked, he talked about the many difficulties they would face. First there were the animals. Two small humans with slings and stones were no match for the large predators of the open plains. They had to be ever vigilant of their surroundings. Next, they had to maintain their fire source. The aurochs horn held a coal from the morning fire, and it could be the difference between life and death. After that they had many natural barriers to cross. Their home land had a few streams that grew large with the winter melt and rainstorms. In the north they would find large, fast-moving rivers that never shrank, and had to be crossed. Dura knew this was no problem for her since she was an excellent swimmer. An easier task would be finding food. They carried a half moon's supply of travel cakes, dried meat and fat, to get them through lean times. The plains in summer were endlessly bountiful, and would be that way for two more moons.  
"Where will we go first?"  
"There is a valley where my mother lived. There we will find supplies, and a link to the people we will spend the winter with."  
"What are they like, the Others?"  
"They are tall and thin, much weaker than Clan people. They do not use their hands to talk like Clan, they use their sound words like we do."  
"Do they know our words?"  
"No, your mother and I made up our own words. They have different words and many, many more of them. We do not have to learn them all, just the important ones."  
Dura thought for a while. "If they do not talk with their hands, and they don't know our words, how will we learn their words?"  
"Excellent question. My mother taught the group of Others that we are going to see how to talk the Clan way. But we may meet Others that do not speak with hands. We may also meet others that do not like Clan, that do not like us. They call us children of mixed spirits, and some think of us as just animals."  
"Mother told you this?"  
"Yes."  
'What else did she tell you?"  
"It is hard to say. Some of it I remember as if it were a normal conversation. Other parts are like I have been given new Clan memories and I just remember them when they are needed. There are some new sound words your mother told me would be helpful. Repeat after me. 'Hello, I am Dura'."  
"Hello, I am Dura. What did I say before my name?"  
"It is a greeting."  
"Should I kneel before them and request to speak?  
"No, they don't do that. They treat their women as equals. Better than equals in some ways. Here is the rest of it. 'I am the granddaughter of Ayla. Do you know of Ayla of the Lion Camp?"  
Dura repeated it several times until she had the whole thing memorized. "What does that all mean?"  
"You are telling them your name, that you are related to my mother, and asking them if they knew my mother."  
"But I won't understand their answer. Ayla. That was your mother's name?"  
"No, her name was much longer, but the Clan people who found her could not speak it. All they could say was Ayla, so that is all she ever used and that longer name was lost, even to her. As for their answer to your question, if they move their head side to side, then they do not know her. If they move their head up and down and smile, then they do. They may point in a direction to walk or they may even walk with you to show you the way. If they look angry or deceitful, just walk away quickly watching them in the corner of your eye. These are people that don't like us. Your mother says she will keep them away from us until we meet Deegie."  
"Deegie is leader of the Lion camp?"  
"No, she is leader of another camp now. But she was like a sister to Ayla, and she is the one we should meet first."  
"I cannot wait to meet her. This is going to be such a great journey."  
They camped that night at a small cave with an established hearth. Several rabbits they killed along the way were cooked and eaten completely. Their skins were cleaned and folded and stowed in Durc's pack. Father and daughter slept under the only fur they carried.  
The next morning, Dura told Durc of her plan to scout ahead, but Durc told her no because of the large predators.  
"If I run into a cave lion pride, do you think having you with me will save me?"  
"The point is not to run at all. You need to study what is ahead of you."  
"I know how to do that. You have no idea how far I have run from the cave, do you? I have run further than this hunters cave and back in a single morning. Remember that day I got back just before sunset? I ran all the way to the sea and back."  
Durc was stricken. She had been in such danger and he did not even know. "I had no idea."  
"I will scout a little ahead and then report back to you. I need to run."  
Durc shook his head no, but motioned the words "Go ahead, run." She was off, her pack bouncing gently on her back. Then Durc realized why she packed so lightly. Ura had not warned him of this. Could she look out for her daughter from the spirit world? Ura had said they both had long lives ahead of them, but that did not mean they could throw all caution to the wind.  
She was back an hour later and reported about half a day's walk to wooded hills. If they headed more west the plains go much further. There was a large bison herd moving south through that pass so the grass is lower. Durc knew the mountains to the east were where the peninsula connected with the mainland.  
"We need to go there, where that mountain range ends."  
"When we get closer to the wooded hills, I will scout ahead for a good path to take."

Durc increased his pace for a while, and he felt good to be free of all the cave activities. He often spent days alone wandering the nearby hills, but the cave was never far from mind or body. His long-distance trips were always in groups. He started to understand what Groban liked about his trading journeys. Durc knew there was a Clan just another day's walk east in the foothills of the Eastern mountain range. He had no interest in connecting with distant Clan members. He had one goal, north to Deegie. He pictured Deegie as his mother since she was the only one of the Others he had ever seen. His vague memory of her was only that of a tall woman with yellow hair.

Groban had asked Durc not to leave. He did not care that Dura had touched a weapon, and he was the only one that knew about it. Groban knew that he owed the success of the cave to Durc, and worried that his luck would leave with him. Durc told Groban that he may return before the next gathering, and he was glad that Dura was still welcome among Groban's Clan.  
Durc was now free from making decisions, giving advice, watching the children, and endlessly telling stories. That was good to be free from, but he thought he would soon miss it. He was unfamiliar with long term solitude, and Groban had many times told him what it was like for him. Dura would be a good traveling companion, but he had wanted to take this trip with his whole family. Ura did not want to go, but she would have followed him anywhere. His son was too young to travel without a mother. Ura had specifically told him to leave the boy with her mother. The boy hardly acknowledged his leaving, perhaps he did not understand what was happening. More likely the loss of his mother, as Durc had at that age, was far more traumatic and he had already bonded with Oda.

The woods came into sight and they stopped at a stream to eat, drink, and refill the water bags Durc carried. "You can scout ahead, but not far. It is too easy to get separated in these woods." He watched Dura until she disappeared in the woods. He knew the woods are tricky to navigate long distances. All those around his cave had established trails, most based on the commonly used animal trails. This journey was no time to explore where the animals like to go. He judged where the sun was in relation to the mountain peak he was aiming for. Moss was one of the only references inside the woods if you lose the sun. He noticed some red leaf bushes near the edge as he walked, weaving among the randomly spaced trees. He noticed red leaves on the ground to his left, but no bushes with red leaves nearby. He stopped and looked back. The leaves formed a line that he had crossed about twenty strides back. When he looked back up the hill Dura was running down following the line of red leaves. She skidded to a stop when she saw her father.  
"I use red leaves to mark trail." She motioned.  
"You are very smart. What do you see at the end of this trail?"  
"There are more trees, closer together, hill is steeper. I am going to get more leaves for a trail."  
Durc handed her a small empty skin pouch he used to wrap fresh meat. "Get many. I will follow trail." It wasn't long before she passed him again heading uphill. When he reached the top, he used the fading light to judge his position. The trail Dura left was curving northwest more than Durc wanted, but it was easy enough to correct. He called her name and then headed down the easy slope into a shallow valley. Just as he began climbing the other side of the valley Dura ran into sight.  
"What did you see?"  
"One more crest, not as steep as that one. At bottom is small clearing with stream. Good place to camp, but dark is too close I think."  
"We have plenty of water. Let's camp near the crest. Walk with me."  
They talked about nothing in particular and collected fallen sticks as they climbed. There was a large boulder to the left of the path and Durc pointed in that direction. He dropped his pack and collected some stones to create a fire ring. He brushed leaves and needles away from the ring, and then stacked the sticks they had gathered. He used the coal in the aurochs horn to get a small fire going. Dura collected enough wood to get them through the night as Durc cooked the rabbit he had dropped earlier in the day. They ate and talked, repeating the Mamutoi words of greeting and inquiry. Durc rubbed his aching muscles and spread out the sleeping furs. He began telling Dura stories of her mother from before she was born. They fell asleep quickly.

In the morning before first light, Durc added the remaining dry sticks, and the fire came to life again. He heated water for tea, and from his otter skin medicine bag he added some pain-relieving willow bark to ease his aches. The pains would only get worse for the next few days he suspected. At first light he packed up the camp, preserved a good coal in the aurochs horn and smothered the fire. Dura drank her tea and ate the remainder of the cold rabbit. She lifted the half empty water bag and added it to her load. They started off down the hill just as the red leaf trail became visible.  
They were close enough to the eastern mountains that the sunlight was very muted for much of the morning. They reached the meadow mid-morning and Durc reoriented his bearing and turned them more northward. Dura found some blue leaves to add to her trail bag and ran off in the indicated direction. She was back in a very short time saying that they had reached the plains again and she could see the sea.  
As Durc had hoped, the woods provided a short cut of many days. They reached the land bridge which was near sea level and made camp for the night. The next morning Dura took more of the load on her pack but continued to run ahead scouting. She came back to report a large river that ran to the northeast. After lunch she ran ahead and followed the river northeast and found that it curved south. Durc stopped when he reached the river and set up camp, cooking a large bird that had been waddling near the waterline. Dura returned after dark had fallen, guided in part by the camp fire.  
"It empties in the sea in that direction. We need to go the other way." She said.  
"This bird meat is delicious. Try some." He was very angry and worried about her, but did not want to show it. He could tell she was a little afraid. "It empties in the sea on the other side of those mountains?"  
"Yes." She took tentative bites of the stringy meat.  
"That is good. We will head in the other direction tomorrow. We will follow this river until it is very small and then we will cross it. There may be some small rivers that flow into this one that we will have to cross. If it is over my head, then you may have to swim across several times carrying small loads. Do you think you can do that?"  
"Of course! I love swimming."  
"That is good. My foot is sore, do you think you could carry more of my load tomorrow? We don't have to carry water since we will be next to the river for maybe half a moon."  
"I will carry all of it if it helps your foot heal."  
"Some of it will be fine." Durc looked up at the stars. "Your mother told me that your children would fly way up there some day. Not in the spirit world, in the real world. She told me of such strange things, I did not understand them. It was like she knew everything, and she had difficulty deciding what she needed to tell me. She wanted to tell me everything, but knew there was only a limited time. She said she would talk to me again while we are on this journey. She said she would talk to you too, but not until your journey is over."  
"I have so many questions about this world. It is a good thing to think they all will be answered." Dura had stopped using her hands to talk. They were difficult to use in the dim firelight and the sound words were so much easier.  
"I agree. Let's go to sleep now and get an early start in the morning."

Chapter 2: Cloudy Horizon

In the morning, the clouds had gathered and it threated to rain as they walked quickly along the grassy shore of the river. When the rain started to fall, Durc held the traveling tent over both of their heads and he told her stories of her mother and rain. In the afternoon the sun came out with a rainbow showing brightly across the river. Durc realized that the river had turned north and they were now walking away from the sun, their short shadows in front of them.  
"Do you want to run ahead and see if the river bends back west? If it does, we can cut the corner. Well, I can, you will have run twice that distance by then. Give me your pack, my foot feels better now." Durc smiled and knew she would not go too far again and risk getting caught in the dark.  
She was back quickly and said excitedly "There is a small hill up ahead next to the river and you can see very far across the plains in every direction from it."  
"A good place to camp for the night. See if you can find dry wood for a fire." Knowing it wasn't far he continued to carry the full load and walked slowly and carefully. Dura ran ahead and had a good pile of driftwood established. She was still in the process of carrying stones to the top of the hill for a fire ring. Durc helped her carry the rest of the necessary stones in one trip. He put down his load and surveyed the landscape. He could have cut across the large elbow made by the river and saved himself maybe an hour of walking. If he had done so, he would have missed this view, which was far more valuable than walking time. The grass seemed to go on forever. The mountain range to the east was even bigger than his eastern mountains on the peninsula. Those mountains caused an almost daily rain shower that kept the vast expanse of grassland prairie well watered for the enormous animal herds that grazed there.  
Durc could see endless herds of animals in every direction. What an incredible hunting ground this would be. This is where many, if not all of the animals that they kill on the peninsula come from, or at least pass through during migration. Then Durc realized it would be full of predators because it was such an abundant hunting ground. He began studying the topography for the safest and quickest route through. What he could see to the northwest was perhaps 3 days of travel and all of it down in the grass among the predators. There was a small river to cross tomorrow, but the tributary he saw near the horizon could just as easily be this river turning back south. That will be a difficult crossing. He would cut this corner tomorrow and be back at the river by tomorrow night so they would not have to carry much water. His plan was set.  
He pointed out the path he wanted to take. "We will run together tomorrow in that direction, using that double mountain peak as a guide if it is not too cloudy. There will be many predators out there and we are safer together. Have many stones ready for your sling."  
They ate well but slept poorly. The sounds of animals falling to predators and the unfamiliar lion roars made Durc wake often to stoke the campfire. Every animal knew the inherent danger of fire and instinctively stayed away. In the morning Durc adjusted their pack loads to be as swift as they could be, giving the energetic Dura a much heavier load that she had carried thus far on their journey. It was cloudy, but the twin peak was still visible. They set out at a slow run until Durc got used to the load and he increased to his best endurance speed. Dura had no problem staying with him, though she was breathing much harder than normal. Durc carried his spear at the ready, and Dura had a stone in the sling pouch in one hand and a second stone in the other.  
They came upon three hyenas feasting on an onager carcass and they swung wide of the cackling group. The grass often was taller than they were, but it never obscured the mountain that guided them. They reached the small river crossing before midday, far faster than Durc had expected. The water was only to his waist and they held the packs overhead as they crossed. They stopped on the other side and ate traveling food and drank deeply. If they kept this pace he calculated they would only spend one night in this vast grassland. Dura looked sad.  
"Dura, is your pack too heavy?"  
"No, father. I can carry more if you need me to."  
"Why do you look sad?"  
"I was hoping I would get to swim across this river but it was too small."  
"Would you like to swim?"  
She brightened immediately when he motioned for her to go ahead. She threw off her wrap and dove in. Durc had forbid her from swimming in the big river because the current was so swift. She swam out of sight upstream and then floated back into view. When she passed her father she began swimming upstream again. He realized this would be a good safe place to wash so he removed his wrap and pulled some soap root, walked out to the middle of the river, and began washing. Dura came floating by him and splashed him. He gave her a false angry look and splashed her back.  
"Go pull some soap root and wash yourself." She did as asked, and then swam upriver again to rinse off.  
Durc immersed himself to rinse and for the first time in his life, lifted his feet off the bottom of the river and floated. It was a wonderful sensation. He put his feet down and walked back upstream and floated back down to their temporary camp. He walked back up the stream and watched more carefully how his daughter moved her arms and legs. He realized he needed this skill to cross the larger rivers safely so he began to flail about in the water trying to swim. Dura laughed at him and then slowed her stroke to stay beside him and showed him how to do it. It took some time but he was eventually able to move forward slightly against the current. Durc stood and lifted his daughter out of the water and carried her to shore.  
"Enough swimming girl. It is time to start running again." They dressed, donned their packs, readied their weapons, and were off again. Durc was pleased that the cold water had dulled his soreness and he was able to maintain the morning's pace with little difficulty. He could no longer see the peak as a light rain swept across the valley. He knew the general direction because he could recognize features at the bottom of the mountain now that they were closer. Near sunset the clouds dissipated and Durc spotted another small hill to the west. It was much lower than the previous night's camp but could be a suitable place to stop.  
Dura was several steps ahead him, so he had to get her attention for the direction change. "Dura, over there." Pointing to the hill. He hoped they were close to a water source and was fairly certain the hill would allow him to find it before darkness fell.  
When Durc approached the top of the hill many paces behind his daughter. She stood frozen looking at the ground, her posture tense.  
"What is it Dura?" he shouted raising his spear.  
"It is… fire."  
Durc stood beside his daughter in amazement. A large fire ring that looked like it had been used countless times stood at the center of a trampled down area of grass. The fire was cold, but the grass must have been knocked down within the last quarter moon by animals, or more likely, people. Durc surveyed the area and somehow he knew this was not a Clan fire. He found large piles of bones near one edge of the area. Next to it was a flint working area. The flint flakes were different than what Durc was used to. He picked up a small irregular flake and realized it was a thin blade, a device capable of cutting but so much thinner than his cutting tools.  
"Is this a camp of the Others?" Dura asked. Durc turned and saw her holding a wooden platter that had split into two halves. Her fingers traced the carving of a mammoth with long tusks.  
"I think so."  
"Are they nearby? Are they coming here tonight?" She seemed both frightened and intrigued.  
She practiced her Mamutoi words. "I am Dura, daughter of the child of Ayla. Do you know of Ayla of the Lion Camp of the Mamutoi?" Durc smiled. He was worried about his first meeting with the Others as well. There were piles of wood next to the bones that looked to be firewood, so Durc set about making a small fire at the edge of the ring. This fireplace was large enough for an entire Clan gathering. How many hunters had stayed here so recently? Two hands? A hand of hands?  
He went to a nearby stream for water and failed to get his sling readied to get the vole before it disappeared in a ground hole. When he arrived back at camp Dura was cutting up a vole that she had been able catch with her stones. They sat by the fire for a long time speculating about all the wonders this camp site held. Durc thought he saw a tiny light at the far eastern edge of the valley. It was faint but constant, neither growing nor shrinking. Was that also a fire made by men? A fire of the Others? Could they see his fire? Should he go meet with them? Ura had said to go to the narrow valley his mother had lived in, and from there he would know where to go.

They slept better, the lion roars became part of the background noise. In the morning, Durc studied the path he had chosen, and his eyes kept going to the east side of the plain where he had seen the fire light. He could see that the river did bend to the south and the branch he wanted to follow continued north. He was going to have to cross the still large river today and he wanted to be on the correct side of that north branch. He could cross right here, or before the two rivers combine.  
"Let's go down to the river here." They left their packs at the camp and ran the distance to the river with just their weapons. Durc took a few tentative steps into the fast moving water. The mud was slippery and he stepped out immediately.  
"I don't think we should cross here."  
"It is too fast." Dura agreed. "We would be far back there before we got out. It would be difficult to make multiple trips."  
"OK. Let's try to cross above where they join."  
Back on the hill, Durc took into consideration the downstream drift and picked place far upstream where it looked wider.  
"I think we will head for that notch between the twin peak mountain and the one to the left."  
"I stay with you?"  
"Yes, same as yesterday."  
They set off at a fast pace because they found an elk trail that went very straight in the general direction that wanted. By noon they were again looking for a good place to cross the river. It was wider, and much slower here.  
"Tell me how deep it is." She put her pack on the ground and removed her wrap. She stepped in and started walking out. It was above her hips until about half way and it dropped off. She swam all the way across and found that it was over her head only a few paces from shore. Durc wasn't sure if he could swim half the river, and he wasn't sure if he could carry anything while swimming. Dura swam all the way back, standing and walking for the last few paces.  
Durc saw a log float lazily by and it gave him an idea. He found some dry driftwood that had been marooned when the river had overflown its banks. He removed his wrap and pulled one of the pieces into the water with him. It floated high in the water until he pushed down on it. It would not hold the weight of his pack and it would roll over. He pulled down two more pieces and tested how much it took to submerge them. He motioned for Dura to bring some leather thong to him and he tied the three oddly shaped pieces of wood together. He pulled two more logs down and floated them next to the others. Dura suggested he put them on top of the others, and it was better, but awkward.  
He pulled one of logs off and pushed it under the three tied together and they all lifted higher. He did the same with the other one, and it now supported quite a bit of weight. He motioned for his wrap and Dura brought it to him. He laid it on top of the raft and picked Dura up and sat her on on it. It floated well so he moved out to deeper water and found he could push the raft with just his kicking legs and stayed almost even with the shore. He pushed her back to shore and she hopped off. They put both packs on the raft and it sat lower than Dura made it, but was still well above the water.  
"We both push?" Dura suggested.  
"You push, I hold on." Durc said, looking at her flatly. Then he smiled. The crossing went smoothly and while Durc untied the logs to reclaim the leather thong, Dura spent some time leisurely swimming. Durc loaded all the weight in his pack.  
He called to her and said "You swim, I walk."  
He realized it would have saved a lot of energy if they had just floated downstream a ways before climbing out. He kept her in sight as she floated on her back pushing gently against the flow with her arms. As the other branch came into sight he called for her to get out. She walked a while to dry off in the sun, and then put on her wrap.  
Durc made no motion to give her a pack so she asked. "Do you want me to scout ahead?"  
"No, just walk with me. Why don't you tell me a story."  
"A story? You mean repeat one of the stories I have heard?"  
"If you want. Or you can make up a new one. How about you tell me about running all by yourself from our cave to the sea."  
"I knew the way because I paid close attention to landmarks the quarter moon before when we came back from there. I ran, and swam in the sea, and then I ran back."  
"Weren't you worried about the danger?"  
"Never. I am a fast runner."  
"Yes, you are. I need you to be a little more careful now because it is just the two of us. I don't think I can complete this journey without you. There are a lot of unknowns ahead of us, and I need you to help me like you did crossing the river. It seems like you have been training for this journey since you started walking. I have known for a long time that I wanted to make this journey, but I did not train for what is actually needed like swimming and running."  
"You will get better at swimming, it isn't hard." Dura said, taking his hand. "You need to cup your hands better to pull more water."  
"If we come back this way, we could float all the way down this river to the sea, couldn't we?"  
"That would be fun. How long would that take? It would get too cold maybe. You can't stay in this water all day. Maybe we build a bigger log float and we both float down the river and not get cold?"  
"You are so smart, my beautiful daughter." They continued walking and talking about other journeys she had taken alone in the area around the cave. Durc knew she ran a lot, but no idea how far.

They stopped to watch a small herd of horses cross the river. Then they noticed the dark clouds moving in, and the heard a distant rumble of thunder. They were at least a day's run from the woods at the end of the plain. They were in an open field and lightning was approaching. Durc had not considered this possibility and was torn between getting away from the river, or using an undercut of the high bank for shelter. He stepped over and looked at the shoreline and saw no good places for shelter. He started a slow run into the brush and found place to set up a tent. There would be no fire tonight, so it was critical they stay dry. Durc quickly built a thick bed of hay from the surrounding grass and set up the small low tent over the sleeping fur. Durc retrieved some traveling food and water bag then covered their packs as well as he could. As the first raindrops started to fall, they crawled in and waited. The thunder roared louder and louder and he felt Dura shaking. He held her tighter and began speaking softly in her ear. He told her a story of his first memory of a thunderstorm with his mother. They had been perfectly safe in the cave, but he was so scared because it was so loud.  
"My mother told me where the thunder comes from…"  
Durc had to hold the tent over them as the wind came up and the rain came down harder. Dura was sleeping now, but he could not. The good thing about the storm is that the predators were unlikely to be roaming. The storm eventually abated and Durc fell asleep. He woke to bright sunshine and his daughter's hand shaking his shoulder.  
"Father. Time to go."  
Durc took some time for his eyes to adjust. It was mid-morning already. He did not feel well rested. His back was wet. He stood and rolled up the damp sleeping furs. The packs were damp, but OK. They needed a fire, but that could wait until the end of the day. They would have to make it themselves because the coal in the aurochs horn was cold and wet. He tried to figure out where they were and how far they could travel in only half a day.  
"We will run today. It will be muddy, so not very fast. You stay with me until we are out of tall grass." Durc noticed she had taken almost half the weight in her pack and had filled the water bag. She handed it to him to drink. He drained it and carried his pack in his arms for a while, allowing his back to dry in the sunlight. This branch of the river had many tributaries, most of which they easily stepped over, and it grew smaller quickly. When it was just a small stream, Durc filled the water bags. The grass was shorter now, so he could see over it, but it could still hide the largest of predators. The sun was falling behind the mountains and they needed to stop and build a fire. He saw no high points in the land. There was no driftwood near a small stream, nothing to build a fire with. He should have stopped earlier. He was not making good decisions.  
"Dura we need to build a fire but there is no wood." She looked at him puzzled. "I don't know what to do."  
"Are you feeling well father?"  
"I, I don't know." Everything started spinning and went black.

Durc woke with a start. He was shaking and could not stop. The sun was high and bright and he saw Dura spinning a stick between her palms. She was not able to make the fire on her own, but she kept trying anyway. Durc was under the sleeping furs but felt very cold. He tried to think but he could not understand. Had he slept through the whole night? Dura was continuing her twirling and he just watched her, detached from the world.  
Then he heard Ura's voice behind him. He turned weakly but could not see her. She just kept repeating the same gentle words. "Help her." Durc looked back at his daughter. She had cleared a large area of grass, built a small fire ring and was attempting to ignite a small bundle of grass. Durc felt a shot of adrenaline course through him as he realized he was close to death, and his daughter would be alone so very far from the cave. He flung the damp fur off and crawled over to Dura. Kneeling opposite each other they took turns keeping the stick turning with downward pressure to maximize the friction. Despite his violent shivering they soon had a glowing ember which she blew into flame. She kept feeding the grass into the fire pit, but it did not produce much lasting warmth, just a smoky sizzling.  
"I am sorry Dura, I have failed you." Durc whispered, and then he fell back into exhausted darkness.  
Durc was walking through a forest and noticed a small roe deer walking beside him. He asked it why it was not afraid of him. It replied in thoughts, not words or signs, that it brought him into this world. It was not able to control this world, only visit it. The deer stopped and turned toward Durc and put its hooves gently on his shoulders.  
"You are the son of Broud."  
"No. I am the son of Ayla, the woman who hunts."  
"True. But you are the son of Broud too. You have gone forward without thinking, just as Broud would have."  
"No, I think much. I think everything about." His words were not coming out right.  
"You think sometimes. You must think all times. Even when you are tired you must think. She is all you have in the world right now, and you stopped thinking. You traveled faster than your mind could keep up with. You need to think farther than your path for the day."  
"Can you help her?" Durc asked.  
"I already have. This changes your plans though. Ura was guiding you to one destiny. Now your path will be longer and more difficult."  
"Will I see Ura again?"  
"Of course."  
"When?"

Durc awoke to a strange face dripping warm tea into his mouth. He did not recognize the flavor of the herbs. The woman with dark hair was saying many sounds, but he did not understand any of them. He was in a cave, but it was not rock. It was sticks and grass. He felt the warmth of a fire. He heard Dura's voice, but he could not see her, she was not in the cave with him. There was a wet cloth on his forehead but he did not notice it until the woman lifted it and the cool air washed over it. Durc realized this was a woman of the Others.

Chapter 3: Others

"Well, what should we do with them?" Chondul asked.  
"I don't know. We can't just leave them. He is days away from being able to travel and she is just a girl." Harfet replied.  
"But we have to go or we are going to be late to the mating at the summer meeting. We already missed the first one because you wanted to make this silly journey."  
"Silly? You want to mate a woman who you think is silly?" Harfet asked playfully.  
"Not you, this journey. I do not understand your need to see unusual places. A mountain is a mountain. A river is a river. I think you just have cold feet."  
"What is it that the girl keeps saying? I didn't even know the mixed ones could talk."  
"The first word sounds like the Mamutoi greeting, but rest is gibberish."  
"There is a woman I know that knows Mamutoi pretty well, and she should still be at the summer meeting."  
"You're not thinking about taking them to the summer meeting, are you?" Chodul looked at her incredulously.  
"I am. They would be quite a novelty, don't you think? Talking flatheads."  
"Talking, but not saying anything intelligible. They'd probably just kill them like all the rest." Chondul almost spat the words.  
"You're right. How about we stay one more night and if he is getting better, we will leave them here and go on to our mating."  
"And if he isn't?"  
"I cannot leave a sick man to die. It goes against all my training."  
"Now he is a man? A minute ago he was a 'flathead.'"  
"He is obviously a mix. Why the Great Earth Mother would want to mix us with flatheads, I will never know."  
"You know I hate that word."  
"You just said it yourself."  
"I was just repeating… never mind. I will go and see if I can catch some dinner since we'll be feeding them again." He picked up his spear and walked off. The girl followed him at a distance. He occasionally looked back to see if she was still there. He thought about how much he would need. He could leave the extra for the man and child. He saw the aurochs herd in the distance. A calf would be good, but a lot of work. A few voles or rabbits would be good enough. He heard a sound behind him and the girl ran and picked up a dead rabbit. She tied it to her waist thong and then readied her sling again. He saw a vole and tossed his spear but missed. He walked to recover it and saw the girl swinging the sling and then she ran and picked up another rabbit. He was impressed. It looked like she was a better hunter than he was. That was not a difficult feat, he was a musician, not a hunter. Why he agreed to go on this journey he still could not remember. A third thudding sound and she picked up a vole. Probably the same one he missed. That was more than enough food for tonight, and she was obviously capable of getting more for herself. He smiled and waved at her and she mimicked the action. He headed back to the lean-to shelter and related this newest of hunting stories to Harfet. The two of them watched as she expertly butchered and cooked the animals for them.  
"She would make a good servant girl." Harfet said.  
"No."  
"And she knows how to build a signal fire if we ever need one."  
"Absolutely not."

Chapter 4: Desolation

"Father, are you feeling better?"  
"Yes daughter." He was up and walking when she got back from fetching water and firewood. A quarter moon had passed, and every time he seemed to be getting better he would fade back into delirium.  
"Will you be able to walk tomorrow? Can we start our journey again?" Dura was stir crazy. She did not like being here in this strange grass cave.  
"We'll see in the morning." Durc said weakly. Dura sank in response. "I will try, but I cannot promise anything. When did the Others leave?"  
"Many days ago. She gave me medicine to put in your tea, but it ran out yesterday." Durc thought about that. He didn't seem to get better until the medicine ran out. He wondered if what she was giving him made him worse. He knew it was an unfamiliar taste. He was still weak, but his head was clear now.  
"Did they tell you anything about my mother?"  
"They didn't understand a word I was saying. They didn't understand hand signs either. I think they thought I was stupid until I hunted better than them. They seemed to like my cooking and they smiled when they left. I did not like them very much. I tried to make common words with them but they just looked annoyed when I made sound words, so I stopped."  
"These were not the Others were supposed to meet. We may not meet them for much longer than I had planned."  
"Why?"  
"Because my sickness has delayed us. Deegie will no longer be at the valley. We need another way to connect with the people of the Lion Camp."  
"We are not going to the valley?"  
"I don't know. I must think." That made him remember the roe deer dream. Longer and more difficult it had said. "I think we have to travel further north by ourselves before we find them. Where are we?"  
Dura explained the short journey across the plains to the east. She showed him the two poles the man had used to drag him with. Durc hefted it and dragged it a few feet. He had Dura get on and dragged it some more. It made carrying loads easier. Could he run with it? He ran a few steps and Dura bounced off. His pack would have to be securely tied to it. It needed a basket so he could easily add firewood as they traveled. He spent the afternoon trying to find the best configuration. The closer to the bottom the heavy items were, the lighter the handles were. He created three pockets. The top one held the sleeping fur and lightweight items. The middle held the traveling food and water. The bottom held the tools and had room for dry wood. He loaded up and found that the two handles were awkward.  
The next morning, he tried to configure it so only one handle needed to be pulled but it would always tip away. Dura suggested adding a longer pole down the middle. The extra weight of the pole was offset by the greater leverage it gave him. They spent the afternoon hunting an aurochs and carrying it back to the grass lean-to cave. They cut up the meat and dried it over the fire. They now had enough to last them a moon or more. Ura had told him that beyond the plains was tundra, a vast emptiness with little to live off of. It was not far to the valley, but he knew now he had to be prepared to go much farther.  
Dura was happy when they finally left the grass cave behind. They were out of the plains and into a sparsely wooded area by nightfall. Durc realized his pole drag would not work in a densely wood area, and hoped he would not have to navigate such an obstacle. They camped and slept under the stars, happy to be out of the sight-inhibiting grasslands. The next day Ura ran ahead and reported that the forest was dense ahead, but if they went west it was easier terrain. She was glad to have her freedom again and carried only a little water and food. After many days of these easy wooded hills it came to an abrupt end.

They stood at the edge of the world and could see incredible distance forward and to the sides. The imperceptible downhill slope was full of tiny undulating hills. There was nothing on the horizon. There were no rivers. There were rocks and boulders of varying sizes dotting the landscape. Durc saw a small herd of horses, then realized they were Mammoths many times more distant. There was no need for scouting here. A hand's worth of days running could be surveyed in seconds. And none of it held water or firewood. How were they to cross this? It was like a sea without water. Out there he could only rely on the sun for direction. Northwest was his goal and that looked no different than any other direction. A few of the boulders were larger but they were not very distinctive. Using one as an aiming point could easily be lost if you looked away for long. He saw three boulders close together and decided that was the most distinct feature. He would keep that to his right and look for another way point at the end of each day. It was early to camp, but this was the last of the water and wood. With his sled loaded up heavily, he would be walking for the next two days. The moon was nearly full that night and the forbidding landscape looked no different. He saw Ursus walking in the sky above him and felt the chilly wind blow.  
Dura pulled one side of the drag and they were able to sustain a slow run for most of the day. They drank water sparingly knowing it would have to last a long time. Durc began cursing the wind for it was relentlessly blowing in his face. Then he wondered if it ever shifted. Did it always flow from the north here? Could he navigate by it? He would soon lose his wooded reference point behind him and it seemed there was still nothing ahead. How could people live here? The sun began to set, but the moon was bright in the darkening sky so they continued their slow running until the moon was high overhead. They built a fire and slept well from their exhaustion. At sunrise they were running into the wind again.  
On the fourth day, the wooded hills were out of sight, and the horizon looked no different. The sled was lighter now after three fires. Ura ran ahead to see if there was an end to this madness. He noticed that she was curving to the right as she became a small dot in the emptiness. This was because she used the sun at her back as her reference and it moved slowly across the summer sky. She returned with nothing to report, it was endless. They walked through the unusually warm night, the wind had abated some. And both were surprised when the sun began to rise. It did not seem like the night was very long here. By the next nightfall they were exhausted and made camp before dark. Again it seemed to be a short night and they were slow to get up and going. Durc realized they did not have enough water if they were to turn around and go back. If they were not closer to a water source in the northwest than the one behind them they would die out here. There had not been any clouds either. A rain shower would have been helpful to replenish their supply.  
When the wood was gone, he moved the pack items lower on the drag and thought about ditching it altogether. But he could now run at a moderate pace with it in one hand, and he alternated sides occasionally. He saw a small herd to his left and wondered where they found their water. "Dura! Run to the west and see if there is a river over that horizon." He slowed to a walk and watched her disappear over a low hill. She reappeared and was waving her arms. They were saved. He turned toward her and increased his pace. She met him halfway, out of breath.  
"Is it a river?" She nodded, leaning on her knees to catch her breath. "That is good. I was afraid we would never find water out here." Soon she realized she did not need to breathe to talk with her hands and began gesturing wildly.  
"It isn't just a river. It is trees and people. Many people. Many Others. Many camp fires. Many grass caves. You can hear them even though they are very far away."  
This was it. They had arrived. These were his mother's people. He knew it had all been true. Everything Ura had said was true. She had told him there were so many people he would not believe it.  
How were they to approach them? Just walk in? Should he leave Dura out of sight in case it was dangerous? That was a silly idea. Did he need the pole drag anymore? Only if he had to cross that tundra again. He would leave it here. He reloaded their packs quickly and they ran toward the west.  
As they came into view Durc was stunned. The people were tiny in the distance, but there were so many. The river was small, and he could see he had probably been walking parallel to it for days. "How foolish of me not to look over the horizons." He said to himself. If he had more water he would have walked right past all of these people and probably died. He didn't know that a giant wall of ice lay only two more days walk away. Enough fresh water for a billion lifetimes.  
As they approached the river the sun was low, but the days seemed so much longer that he knew he had plenty of time before sunset. Dura ran forward and splashed into the water, bending over and drinking deeply of the cold gray water. This was glacial runoff, Durc thought, but there were no mountains in sight. How odd this was.  
There were a few people walking toward them on the other side of the river. It was hard to tell how deep the river was, but it hardly mattered if all their supplies got wet now. They were here. He waved at them, and they waved back tentatively. Durc took his time and drank his fill and studied all that lay before him. It was all so unfamiliar, and yet it did not feel foreign to him. The Others veered away and pointed up river as they walked that way. They began walking across the river, but it barely came up to their knees. Durc could tell it was much deeper than that. He led Dura up the river bank and they met the people as they came ashore. He could tell they were not happy to see him.

Chapter 5: Kin

Durc began to speak but Dura stepped forward and held up her hands palm out with a great big smile. "Hello. I am Dura. I am the granddaughter of Ayla. Do you know of Ayla of the Lion Camp of the Mamutoi?"  
All five of them looked at each other in shock. Then the tallest one stepped forward laughing and began signing a Clan greeting in return.  
"Greetings young lady. This man is called Danug," he said his name slowly. "leader of the Lion Camp. It is a great pleasure to meet you. Is it possible that the man with you is Durc, son of Ayla?"  
"He is." She signed. Durc just gaped in amazement that this enormous man knew his name.  
"Greetings Durc, son of Ayla. I just saw your mother last summer. She is well, and you have a sister. She would be beside herself to know you are alive and well. And that she is a grandmother of all things! Ha! The most beautiful woman in all the world is a grandmother."  
The four people behind the big man did not share his enthusiasm for their meeting. Durc was still cautious but returned the greeting with his hands. "Greetings Danug. I was told to ask for the woman Deegie. Do you know her?"  
"Of course I know her, she is my cousin. We grew up together in the Lion Camp. She now has her own camp."  
"Dura and I do not speak your language but we would like to learn. It seems that those with you do not share your knowledge of Clan signs." Danug turned realizing he had left his fellow leaders completely in the dark. He began speaking rapidly to them. The only word he recognized was his mother's name, which came up several times. They seemed to relax a bit, but he did not yet feel welcome to them. They turned and crossed the river and Durc realized they were stepping on stones that had been arranged under the surface.  
"Come with me Dura and Durc. Be careful, the stones can be slippery." The big man began to turn, then stopped and held out his arms to Dura. She stepped tentatively forward and he lifted her, pack and all like she was a feather and sat her on his right shoulder. He stepped across the river stones with practiced ease and set her down on the other side. Durc followed slowly after them. She looked up at Danug with a big smile. "You are so high up." She signed.  
"Best view in the crowd, that is for sure." He said the Mamutoi words, which she did not understand, at the same time he signed "Best view", the only words that he could translate. Durc stepped up to the shore and Danug walked them up into the noisy crowd.  
A woman came running up to them and said some words to Danug as she signed a greeting to the two visitors. "This woman is called Latie. I am so glad you are here. Are you hungry? Would you like some bison roast? Please come with me, this way. Let me carry your pack." She pulled at Dura's pack, surprised at its weight, and then took her by the hand. Durc and Danug had little choice but to follow her to Willow Camp.

More than half the people seated there around the fire were able to use Clan signs. As the two guests ate their fill, they listened to the unfamiliar words. Much of it was translated in their limited Clan sign vocabulary. Latie kept asking them questions but could hardly stop talking long enough for answers she was so excited. She began teaching them Mamutoi words, but they were too tired and overwhelmed to grasp much of them.  
"This woman is called Deegie." A new arrival to the tent began signing. "You were told to ask for me? By whom?"  
Durc's first thought she was nothing like what he expected. He did not know what to say, but he thought truth was best. "My mate Ura."  
"Does she know me? Or someone I know?"  
"It is very difficult to explain, a very long story. Is there somewhere Dura and I could make camp?"  
Latie jumped up immediately. "You must stay here with us. We have already made room for you over here and we will not take no for an answer. We have furs for you, but if you prefer to use your own, we will understand."  
Dura stood up and walked to the area with Latie and discreetly signed. "Is it acceptable to swim in river? I need to wash much dirt off."  
"Of course. Do you want to go now? I'll go with you. Let's go. Durc? Do you want to go wash in the river with us?"  
Durc wanted to, but did not have the energy. He shook his head and laid down on the provided furs. He was asleep in seconds.  
Latie signed all the way down to the river and Dura tried not to pay attention to all the people staring at her. They stripped off their clothes and waded into the cold water. It was funny to Dura that Latie was confused that she was no longer able to talk when she needed her arms to stay afloat. Dura enjoyed the renewed silence and swam gently against the current. This was a strange world, but she liked it. If the people ever stopped staring at her, she might even enjoy it.  
Latie went back to shore and retrieved some soap root plants. When Dura came back to shore Latie didn't bother giving her the soap root, she just began washing her back and hair like any mother would. A wave of sadness washed over Dura, realizing that she had missed her mother doing this for her. She had always hated it because it usually meant her day of running free was over, and it was time for Clan duties. Latie chatted on softly and even though most of the words meant nothing, she was beginning to understand a few common words. None of her sound words were the same. But she began pairing them in her mind and when she talked with her hands, she would use the Mamutoi word when she knew it. Latie began saying the words she didn't know as Dura signed them and Dura would repeat some of them back as she stored them away. They sat by the shore letting the cool evening air dry them. Latie started asking personal questions and they began their slow translation dance.  
"My mother died just before we left on this journey. It was a very bad happening. There was a very bad man that hated Durc, and hated my mother, and hated me because we were deformed."  
"Broud?" Latie recalled weakly.  
"Yes! Durc's mother told you of him. He hated her too, but that was long before I was born. He was angry at gathering before the bear festival, and he ran at Durc with spear. My mother got in his way so he put his spear here." Dura pointed at her chest. Latie gasped. "She died soon after. Broud pull spear out, and was about to do same to Durc, but I have sling. I'm not supposed to have because Clan not allow girl to touch weapon. Durc taught me in secret because he is proud of his skill because his mother was only Clan woman who was allowed to hunt with sling. I also run alone a lot, and he wanted me to protect myself. I'm not very good at hitting moving animals. I wait until they stop. Broud's head stop moving." She stood and mimicked the spear in two hands about to thrust down, the pointed to side of head. "not moving, so I stop him killing Durc. If sooner I stop mother dying too, but I did not know what was happening."  
"Oh my child. You have seen terrible things. These are things no child should see. These are things no one should see. Ayla said she was cursed with death for using the sling. Did they curse you?"  
"No one see me, but father say we are both cursed. That is why we left Clan. Mother told him that we should come here."  
"But you said your mother died?" Latie asked.  
"She did. My father unconscious before she died, or he would have protected my mother. She talked to him from spirit world and told him how to find you, find Deegie. Deegie supposed to meet us in valley, Ayla's valley, but we were delayed."  
"How long have you been traveling?" Latie asked as she tried to make sense of 'Ayla's valley'. Deegie's camp was not near a valley. But then it dawned on her that she had come with a large number of fire stones. She must have stopped at the fire stone valley on the way to the meeting. She was lost in thought and had not seen Dura's answer. "What was that?"  
"More than two moons."  
"Oh my, that is a long time, a lot of dirt to wash off." She smiled and stood and they got dressed and went back to the camp. Dura slept next to Durc, Latie related the tale to the others.

"I WAS in the fire stone valley!" Deegie exclaimed.  
They all sat silently contemplating the implications that such knowledge was used to start a two moon journey.  
"It was a last minute decision. We had to go around mammoth lake because of the heavy rain and Branag suggested we go a little further and get some fire stones as gifts. That was 8 days ago. How could anyone know two moons ago where we would be when we did not even plan it?"  
"Mamut?"  
"There are many mysteries about the world after this one." The mamut said enigmatically.  
"In other words, you are just as mystified as we are." Talut bellowed. "Don't feel bad, I don't think even old Mamut would have a good answer for this."  
"Old mamut." Danug said quietly. "Didn't he say he spent time with Ayla's people long before she was there? There must be a strong connection between those people and us."  
"Maybe it is because old Mamut was there that there is a connection." Mamut said.  
"So… what should we do with them?" Danug said.  
"They will come back with us a Lion camp." Latie said with finality.  
"Let's not rush into this decision. Remember all the trouble Rydag and Ayla caused." Sulie, Danug's new mate said.  
"The decision is made and that is final. Even if I have to adopt them to my hearth." Latie said defiantly.  
Danug tried to intercede to keep the peace. "We don't even know what they want to do. Maybe they are just here for a visit. I have walked much further for just a visit."  
"Of course." Latie said. "We won't be holding them prisoner."  
"Latie, why do you want them at Lion camp?" Talut asked reasonably.  
"We are the only ones that can talk to them. We are the only ones that don't hate the flatheads. We have plenty of space since Tulie moved to Deegie's camp. Oh yes, there is also one little thing you all seem to have forgot." Latie stood and yelled forcefully. "We are FAMILY. Ayla is FAMILY. Her son is FAMILY. Her granddaughter is FAMILY!"  
"I just wanted to know the reasoning of our new leader." Talut said. "I agree completely, of course. Not that what I say matters any more."  
"Or ever did." Nezzie said laughing. "You know I welcome them with all my heart."  
Danug nodded. "I want to hear what their plans are first, but it could take all winter to tell Durc all about his mother. She left him when he was three years old. I can't imagine he remembers much." Danug said trying to end the matter without upsetting his new mate.  
"We'll see." Was all Sulie would say for now.  
Deegie, Latie, and Nezzie left the tent together. They had work to do.

Durc was disoriented when he awoke. After sleeping for moons in relative silence the noise around him was like a raging waterfall. Dura was still sleeping next to him. She had started out in separate furs but had moved next to him when she could not sleep. Durc could not comprehend the cacophony of sound words, and wondered if he would ever understand what they were saying. He turned to see Latie looking in his direction. She waved and he smiled back. He sat up, pushing the fur away to keep Dura covered.  
"Good morning" she signed, saying the words at the same time. He returned the greeting and tried the words. "Danug is going to sweat bath if you want to go with him."  
"I don't understand what this is."  
"It is a very hot room that makes you sweat. I think you will like it."  
He still was not sure, but he decided to go along with the big man. Talut and other Lion camp men went as a group. There were other men in the bath from other camps that looked angry that Durc was there. One look from Talut kept them quiet and they left soon after. Durc was surprised to find that many men who had not known his mother knew the sign language of the Clan. They explained that they liked being able to communicate quietly when hunting and secretly at the summer meetings. They adopted the dual talking and were very patient as Durc sounded out a few of the words. They told stories about his mother at the summer meeting long ago. Durc thought he was not understanding them when they told him his mother had ridden on the back of a lion. They all repeated it and even made the roar to indicate the animal they were talking about. One man stood up and ran around the sweat bath like he was on the back of a wild animal. Everyone was laughing and Durc started relaxing. After a while Danug asked what his plans were.  
"I know my mother is very far away, but I would like to see her again." Durc said.  
"I know she would like that. She felt terrible about leaving you, but as you have noticed, your kind is not as welcomed here as you should be. I can tell you how to get to her new home, but it is a very long journey. It is late in the season to start such a journey."  
"I was hoping to stay the winter with you to learn your language and start early next spring."  
"Our language won't help you very far on that journey." Danug said "There are three different peoples between here and there, and their languages are very different."  
"You don't all have the same language?" Durc signed, disappointed.  
"No. The Mamutoi are people of the northern steppes. The farthest camp from here is only a half moon walk. It can be 6 to 8 moons to your mother's new people, the Zelandonii. I can teach you some of their words if you want."  
"I don't know if I can learn two languages. Maybe this journey is not a good idea. Maybe I should just go back home." Durc was dejected. He was also much too hot. "I need to cool down. Where in river can I bathe?"  
"I'll go with you." Talut said, getting up to lead the way.  
Durc thought as they walked. The stares of the people they passed were a strong exclamation point on the mistake this journey seemed to be. In the river Talut turned to the young man.  
"I loved your mother like my own daughter. She was a very, very special woman. It is not a mistake for you to go to the end of the earth to meet her, she is worth knowing." Talut was tearing up. Many of the words were lost because Talut did not know enough of the signs for them. His hands did try to communicate more if he did not know the sign. "You stay with us this winter and you learn our language and teach us more of yours. Then you listen to all the stories we have about your mother. Many I would not believe if I had not seen them with my own eyes. If you then do not want to meet the woman, to make the long difficult journey, I will understand. I will help you get back to your home. I think you will want to go see her. I want to go see her again. The stories are enough for me, and I am too old to make such a journey. Maybe the stories will be enough for you."  
When they finished washing Talut gave Durc a large skin to wrap around himself for the walk back to the Willow camp.

At the camp, Durc was surprised to see Dura dressed in Mamutoi clothing. The women handed Durc some Mamutoi clothing to try on. He was lost on how to put it on so Latie went with him to help him. When they were alone Latie told him that Dura had told the story of his mate.  
"If you are comfortable, I would like to know more. Dura is going to play games with the Lion Camp children." Durc looked concerned. "Deegie will be with them, along with her three children, so you have nothing to worry about." He nodded. "You look good, though those clothes do not fit as well as I hoped. Your shoulders are a bit too big. We'll try to find something better, or I'll just make you some new ones. Let's go sit down and have some food."  
Durc was surprised they were alone in the big eating area. "All gone?"  
"There are so many activities at these meetings, there's always somewhere to go and something to do."  
"But not you?"  
"Talking to you is by far the most interesting thing that I have done in years. There are so many things I want to do, but never seem to get around to doing them. Anyway. Tell me about your mate. Was it the girl that Ayla arranged for you to mate with at the Clan Gathering?"  
"Yes. Ura was deformed like me."  
"You are not deformed." She scolded pleasantly.  
"Ura and her mother come live with us after next gathering. She was not a woman yet. I was a man – a hunter – but still a boy. Broud say bad things at gathering about us, so Brun made him go live at other cave. So much better without him, without his anger."  
"Was he still so angry at your mother?"  
"No, I break his leg with sling because he try to kill Uba's daughter, and Uba, and maybe me."  
"Oh my. He was a bad man. Uba was Ayla's sister?"  
"Yes. She was like my mother after Ayla left. She taught me healing and I help her with everything she do as medicine woman. She teach me cooking and all woman things. I want to learn everything so I can come on journey to find mother. Ura, my mate, would not go on journey with me, so I stay in cave with her. Brun make me leader but it not for me. I make Groban leader and he let me be… different than Clan."  
"So Ura became woman and you mated? "  
"Yes. We were so happy. It is not normal for Clan to be happy. They work and they rest. Me and Ura are part Others, so we want to be happy. Clan man say relieve needs ,and woman must obey. No pleasure. Ura and I much pleasure together. It is much pain for her to be gone."  
"You have just one child, Dura?"  
"No, I also have young boy, too young for this journey. Ura told me to leave him in cave with her mother."  
"Ura told you?" Latie asked, finally getting to the mystery she was so interested in.  
"Yes, Broud throw me to ground and I go black. I don't remember anything until much after. I think I had dream of Ura, strange dream. She tell me she is dead, and that Dura killed Broud, and that I was to take her on this journey to meet Deegie in the valley my mother lived in. When I wake up all is true, and no way I could know it. She knew I wanted this journey, and Dura want any journey, so I do what she tell me to do in strange dream. Now I am here and seeing mother seems like impossible dream."  
"Not impossible. Difficult."  
"Yes, difficult. Did you know Broud my father?"  
"NO! Really?"  
"Yes. He relieves needs because he hate Ayla. She hate him relieve needs with her. They make baby, me. I sorry I not kill him instead of break his leg."  
"Because Ura would be alive."  
"Yes. But, also for Brun. It hurt him much to see Broud, son of his mate, be such bad leader. He thought it his failure. Brun was like father to me. Teach me to hunt. I remember pain in him every time Broud was bad. I never understood that pain until Ura gone. I could have eased that pain."

Chapter 6: Second Light

Latie knew it was best for Durc to stay away from most camps. Some were more open after Rydag's funeral, but some got worse. Dura seemed to have no problems fitting in with the children. Latie spent much of her time with Durc to make him feel as welcome as possible. After another half-moon had passed, they used the hand signals very little, he had taken in enough of the language to get by. They were sitting in the eating area after the morning meal and all had gone to enjoy the day's activities.  
"What is Mother festival?" Durc asked Latie.  
"There are some rituals and music and dancing. Mostly we drink intoxicating drinks that make us feel more free and we share pleasures with whomever we wish."  
Durc was surprised at this. In the tent there was much pleasure sharing at night, but mostly among the mated couples. His thoughts of pleasures with someone other than Ura had not been pleasant ones.  
"Durc? You know medicine, right?"  
"Yes, I know some."  
"Don't you know the cure for that?" She pointed at his tented britches.  
He looked down. A frown crossed his face as he mentally went through all the herbs and roots in his medicine bag. Uba had never told him of one that would take away his need. "No. Uba never told me of cure."  
Latie stood and took his hand pulling him up and toward the sleeping area. She removed her clothing and lay back on her sleeping furs and opened herself to his view. "I would think Ura would have taught you this cure well enough."  
Durc was paralyzed. He did not want any woman other than Ura, but Ura was gone. Latie was beautiful woman and she wanted him to relieve his need. She wanted to cure him like a medicine woman, but she was smiling. She made the Clan sign to end his confusion. Durc began to clumsily remove his Mamutoi clothing and then stopped. She sat forward and pulled his britches down. "Pretend I am Ura if you must. I need you." Durc almost relieved his need into the air right then. He pulled his shirt off and knelt before her. "Please Durc. Please" Latie was now squirming with desire, and Durc fell onto her and became lost in her flesh.  
Afterward he cried for all he had lost. Latie held him under her sleeping furs as he sobbed, then slept. Nezzie came into the sleeping area to retrieve her sewing box and was disturbed by the sight of her daughter with Durc. Latie saw the disapproval in her mother's look and sank. Of all people, she thought Nezzie would understand. The prejudice against Clan ran deep. Nezzie left quickly without another look.  
When Durc woke up a few minutes later he saw her smile, but did not feel a smile. His sadness was even deeper now. He had abandoned his mate, the light of his life. He looked away and then pulled away and went to the river to wash. He actually considered letting the river take him. He could go to her right now and beg her forgiveness. "Yes, Ura I am coming to be with you right now. Please forgive me."  
Two Mamutoi men pulled his limp body from the river and called for the mamut. Durc woke up that night in his sleeping furs. Dura was watching over him and said in their private sound words "I guess you need more swimming lessons from me." Her smile weak, and her anger evident.  
"I am sorry, my daughter. I am weak. I saw your mother again."  
"Really? What did she say?"  
"So many things. She is so proud of you. She is disappointed in me." Durc didn't say any more.

Durc avoided Latie for several days, and she let him. He walked alone on the other side of the river trying to make sense of what Ura had told him. Danug ran to catch up and walk with him on the third day.  
"Durc. We will be leaving for Lion Camp soon. Will you be joining us, or beginning your journey to see your mother?"  
"I am to stay with you for winter if we are welcome."  
"Of course you and Dura are welcome," he said coolly. His mate would not be happy with that news. "I have so many stories still to tell you of your mother."  
"I am sorry this causes you trouble in your hearth. We will try to stay out of the way."  
Danug smiled. "If there is to be trouble in my hearth, better it is you to blame than I." He slapped Durc on the back and laughed. Durc smiled for the first time in days. "Now, you are welcome to take these long lonely walks if you must. Once winter sets in there is no being alone in our earth lodge. For that reason, you need to stop avoiding my sister. You need to straighten things out with her before you even think about stepping one foot toward Lion camp. I am not going through a long winter with disharmony already looming. I will carry you back to your Clan cave myself before I have my sister spend another winter unhappy with a member of Lion camp. We are leaders now, and we have the whole camp to think about."  
"I will do as you ask."  
"Good. I will leave you to your solitude."  
"Danug?"  
"Yes?"  
"Are you against me being with your sister?"  
"If you make her happy, then I am for it. I know you look different from the rest of us, but I was raised with a brother of mixed spirits, so I know better than most that you are the same as us on the inside. BUT, if you are leaving next spring for the other side of the world, don't you dare pretend otherwise. Do not make promises to her you cannot keep. Do not say you are coming back to her. She is not to spend the rest of her life waiting for you."  
"I will not do this."  
"Durc. Let me speak frankly. I walked more than a year just to be near your mother. I was that in love with her. If there was any chance I could be part of her life, I would still be there now. If you go there, you WILL be part of her life. There is no chance you will ever leave there. There is no way you will ever come back here."  
"I know this. This is why I avoid Latie. I will make her sad no matter what I choose."  
"Durc, she has had plenty of sadness and disappointment. You will not be the last one to give her sadness. If you make her happy when you are here, and you are completely open and honest, then her life will be less sad than it has been. She has not told you of her life before now, and it is not for me to tell you. You both have a lot of pain to work through. You may be able to best do that together. Trapped in a small camp in the dead of winter is no place to discover this. Hash things out now, before we leave. I think I have said enough." He turned and walked back toward the camp area.  
Durc walked on and he looked longingly at the river. "Why couldn't I stay with you my mate, my light?"

"Latie, I need you." Durc motioned.  
"For what?" Latie was guarded.  
"I need you to cure my pain. My Ura pain is deep and I try to keep it and hold on to it because it is all I have left of her."  
Latie smiled. "I know exactly what you mean. I want you for a very similar reason."  
"I cannot be your mate."  
"I know that. You are leaving in the spring."  
"Yes, but that is not the reason. I am not the person for you. You will find your destiny next summer. Perhaps I should not tell you such things that will spoil the surprises of life. You would make me very happy. I would have very happy, pleasurable life if you were my mate. This is very difficult not to want. Even though you may be best for me, I am not best for you. I want best for you, so I tell you now, I cannot be your mate."  
"Will you be my pleasure mate?"  
"If this is what you want, I would like it very much. I may still cry after because of Ura pain."  
"I will cry with you. Let's cry until we have no more tears for the past. But I will only do that if you promise to laugh also. We will laugh at all the things we used to cry about. You know you will be with Ura again, right?"  
"I am certain of this."  
"You will be with her, and I will be with mine for all of eternity. That is a good thing. That will make us happy for all of eternity. That should make you laugh with joy every time you think about it."  
"I will try."  
"No more trying to be with her sooner than your time? Especially right after being with me. If you had succeeded you would have left me thinking it was better to be dead than inside me. What a horrible thing that would have been."  
"I am sorry."  
"What else did Ura tell you about my future? Will he be someone I already know? A tall handsome stranger like Jondalar?"  
"I shouldn't tell. I mean, I don't know that."  
"I think you're lying to me." She stepped forward and hugged him tightly. "I'll get your secrets out of you, one way or another, my little caveman."

Chapter 7: Au Revoir

They spent the winter telling stories, making traveling clothes and tools, and sharing pleasures. Latie never cried, never shared her pain, but they did laugh. Durc made a new lightweight travois that was narrow enough for forest and could be used as a traveling lean-to for keeping the rain off. Danug told him many times the landmarks on the journey he had taken, but Durc knew he would be taking a different path.  
When spring arrived, Durc prepared for the strangest part of what Ura had told him to do. Dura accompanied him on the first hunting trip. This was to test their new traveling gear, and to get a very special gift. They repaired a surround Lion Camp had used many times, even though there were no animals in sight to drive into it. Durc told them there would be, and made a special request that Danug understood all too well.  
As if by magic a small group of animals came running down the canyon and they had little to do but close the gate and let their spears fly. Left standing was a solitary young white horse. Dura approached slowly with a loop of heavy cord and put it around the neck. She then talked softly and stroked its neck as she led the animal out of the killing ground. The hunters moved in and began butchering their kill. Durc stayed behind to help carry the meat with his travois. Dura walked and sometimes ran with the animal back to the camp. It was not afraid of her. Dura knew this was somehow her mother's doing. She almost felt her mother's spirit in the animal as they crossed the snowy plain.  
She began talking to it as if it were her mother. "We're leaving soon on another adventure. Mother, I really hate the winter. Is there a place I can go where there is never winter? The winter is so much worse here than in the south by our cave. Ranec tells me if I go further south there will be no winter at all. I miss you mother. I wish you would talk to me like you talk to father."  
When she reached the camp, she approached the special side building and this was the first time the animal began to pull away. She stopped and calmed the animal, talking her final thoughts to her mother as she stroked its hairy mane. The previous fall while most were hunting for their winter meat supply, Durc had gathered hay and grain and put it in the side building. No one used the building because the entrance from inside had been sealed, so no one noticed it had been filled with these unusual supplies.  
Dura finally walked the animal into the building and pulled out enough hay to make a thick bed. She sat down and the animal wandered, sniffing at the floor. The faint smell of horses had remained. The hunters returned a while later. Durc peaked inside the flap to make sure all was as planned.  
"Latie. Before you start cooking the evening meal, could you come outside with me?"  
"Sure." She put on her boots and a coat and followed Durc outside. The hunters had stayed outside to watch.  
"My dear Latie, you have taken away my Ura pain. I have done nothing to ease yours. You hide it much better than I do. I cannot force you to reveal your pain to me. I hope you will be able to find a friend you can trust to listen, and to help you."  
"You have helped Durc. I don't always show it, but I am happier now."  
"Well, Dura and I have a gift for you. You have given us so much, and we will never be able to repay you. Hopefully this will be enough."  
"That is not necessary. I don't need anything. I have everything I could ever hope for." She lied. He led her to the side of the camp and everyone was now outside and watching. Latie was thinking it was some trinket since he had been attempting to carve with not much success.  
"Every time you see it, I want you to remember Dura and me. To remember my mother. To know that you helped us all find each other once again in this world."  
Latie was getting chilled and little annoyed. Then she heard a strange chortle. It was short and quiet, and the light wind swept it away quickly. She looked toward the side entrance and a long nose was poking outside the heavy flap. She gasped and put both hands to her mouth, stifling a scream. It couldn't be. No, it couldn't be. Her knees wobbled and her eyes clouded. She could not move, then it emerged, white as the snow except for the loop of cord around the neck. She dropped to her knees as it walked to her, and she gently wrapped her arms around its neck. She sobbed uncontrollably.  
"I think you have found a friend who will always listen to you without judging you. She has just lost her mother, so you can share your pain with her and she will understand."  
Dura came out with the end of the cord and handed it to Durc. She then brought a basket of grain to the house to make some softened food for a horse that was no longer able to nurse from its dame. When she came back out Latie was holding the cord and hugging Durc, but still sobbing. Dura put her finger in the warm mush and put it in the big mouth. She giggled at the tickling sensation as her finger was sucked clean. She repeated several times using three fingers to scoop more. Then she put the basket up to the snout and it started licking at the sides, getting a little more each time. It wasn't mother's milk, but it did the job. Latie hugged Dura, and then took over the feeding, wiping away her tears and waving at the crowd to stop gawking at her.  
"No one will ever top that gift," Danug said when Durc came inside with his travois full of meat.  
"I wish I could take credit for it. This was a gift from above to a very special woman."  
"I thought she would never open up again after she lost her baby and her mate left her with her grief for another camp and woman." Durc looked surprised. "Oh no, she never told you. I am such an idiot. Forget I ever said anything. My mate is right, I talk too much."  
"You talk just right, my friend. Your mate talk wrong. In Clan we cuff woman who not talk right." Durc winked and then began unloading the meat in the kitchen. Danug let out a roaring laugh that made everyone smile. "One last feast before we leave. Not good to travel on empty stomach. This I know hard way."

The next morning they said their goodbyes inside, but Latie walked with them for a ways to say a more private, personal goodbye.  
"I want to tell my mother the name of your horse." Durc said.  
"I don't know, I haven't thought about it yet."  
"What was name of child that not live?"  
She paused, not aware he knew. Then she teared up and said the name with difficulty. "Yuravec."  
"Boy's name, no good for girl horse."  
"Yurie?" Dura suggested.  
"I like that. Tell Ayla my horse's name is Yurie." Latie said happily.  
"Father, can I run?" Dura asked. He nodded and she was off into the unknown west.  
Durc stopped and turned to Latie. "What will you name our child?"  
"What do you mean? I am not with child, and you are not coming back."  
Durc touched her belly. "We start child last night. You extra loud, and Durc is very grateful for making all think he is great man in furs. Don't worry, he won't look much Clan. He look like smaller Talut. Your mate is... I not tell you. Stay surprise."  
"Please! Give me a hint at least." She said holding her belly.  
"He like both your new gifts from Durc. Durc will miss you. Latie pain will be hard to cure. Must find new woman soon to cure Latie pain." He smiled and they both laughed and hugged a final goodbye.

The End … until Northern Passage. 


End file.
